Glass transition

Marvin Trachtenberg, “Suger’s Miracles, Branner’s Bourges: Reflections on “Gothic Architecture” as Medieval Modernism”, Gesta, 39.2 (2000)m 183-205. In his article, Marvin Trachtenberg aims to redefine our understanding of words like “modern” and “historicism” in regards to Gothic architecture. To prove his point, he uses Suger’s St. Denis along with Bourges Cathedral as examples, but he begins with a lengthy investigation into the language we use to describe Gothic architecture, including the…

The play Fences by August Wilson, and Romare Bearden’s painting Two, but not Two, both share similar stylistic devices to serve a common purpose. At the end of the play Fences, the character Rose, is talking to her son, Cory, about Troy, the protagonist in Fences. In Rose’s monologue she explains Troy’s character and how she met him. Rose’s monologue shares similarities with Romare Bearden’s painting Two, but not two. Romare Bearden, was one of Wilson’s major influences in writing along with…

There are many symbols in classic literature, but those used in The Glass Menagerie, are particularly unique. The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams is a play about the reflections of Mr. Wingfield, a man who abandoned his family in order to pursue his own future. In the play, Williams uses many symbols that signify many different things. Many of the symbols used in the play are used to symbolize some form of escape or distinction between reality and illusion. The entire play is centered…

The play, “Summer of the Seventeenth Doll” by Ray Lawler is mainly a story about life of Australia in the 1950s. In the play, one sees that, Lawler gives audiences rich insights into various aspects of gender issues and cultural identity issues typical of Australian life set in that period of time. The play talks about a group of ordinary people who are struggling to stay young as do not acknowledge the reality that they are aging. In their desperate bid to escape the inevitability of the…

Homelessness is everyday life for the Walls family as they keep on the move around the country looking for their everyday needs. The Glass Castle, written by Jeannette Walls, is a memoir about her life growing up in an unstable family while living in poverty. In the book, the parents try and fend for their kids to try and help them grow up the right way, but it doesn't always work out the way anyone would expect it to. Although there are many ways to cope with different situations and feelings,…

1) Who was Abbott Suger and why was he important? What surprising “building material” did he use? Abbot Suger is the man behind the visionary masterpiece, Saint Denis, which is a stained-glass piece of work that created historical importance in Cathedral glass structure. He is very important for his early work of gothic architecture and his style inspired many builders for years. The building material he incorporated in his work was the concept of light to reflect a symbol of god inside the…

While Pirenne exaggerated Gregory while explaining a strong Merovingian poetic tradition, he takes Gregory’s writing too literally when he describes 6th century Frankish architecture and makes a claim contrary to archeological evidence concerning Merovingian architectural prowess. The Frankish city Clermont, according to Pirenne, was “marked by Byzantine luxury,” (Pirenne, 134). In this case, Gregory agrees with Pirenne, describing the church walls as, “adorned with many kinds of marble,”…

In this chapter of Murray’s book, he examines gothic cathedrals as objects of desire and the relationships between these objects and their agents of its creation. Using Saint Denis as its main example, Murray uses the writings of three principle agents: the ecclesiastical patron, artisans and financers. For his example of Saint Denis, he focused on the writings, illustrations, and correspondence of Abbot Suger, Gervase of Canterbury, and Villard de Honnecourt. He begins by reflecting on how a…

The Glass Menagerie is an extremely successful piece of literature by Tennessee Williams. Williams’s play was first written in 1944 and reflects on a unique view into the fragileness of a families’ structure. The story touches on preexisting social norms and values within society. In a world of complex characters, Laura Wingfield character speaks volumes. Williams describes Laura as a painfully shy, self-conscious young woman, who is physical disabled as a result of a childhood illness. She…

Inside, some of the accessories adorning the church are expensive but not all bought by the church. These artifacts and art pieces were not grandiose splurges, but rather they have been accumulated over the course of one hundred years. The stained glass windows depict not only the frightening foretelling of what could be for those who shun God, but they also show His mercy and love. Sunlight shines through them as rays of light beaming down from heaven, illuminating us and the basic ideas we…